More targeted approach for next year’s Annual Plan
More targeted approach for next year's Annual Plan
8 December 2015
Waipa District Council is looking to take a more targeted and more cost-effective approach to next year's annual plan consultation.
New legislation now means that councils must only consult on their annual plans if there are significant changes from what they had indicated in their 10-Year Plan.
Waipa undertook a very comprehensive 10-Year Plan process earlier this year with a final plan signed off in June. For the next year (2016/17 - year two of the Plan), no major changes are proposed.
The only change of note is that rates increases for the coming year look to be less than originally forecast. This is due to a variety of factors including an increase in contributions from developers and a reduction in Council's overall debt.
Given no major change or new projects are proposed, the Council does not want to embark on a costly consultation programme next year. Instead it will focus on updating the community about how major projects outlined in its 10-Year Plan are tracking, what projects are coming up and provide a range of opportunities for ongoing feedback and conversations.
For Mayor Jim Mylchreest, the approach makes sense.
A whole lot of effort was put into our 10-Year Plan this year to make sure we got it right. We talked about some big issues and had a lot of meaningful conversations with our community. The result was we ended up with a comprehensive Plan that is still on track and meets the community's needs.
We certainly aren't trying to hinder conversations taking place with our community. But let's make sure those conversations are meaningful and let's not spend a whole load of money on discussing things that are already underway.
Updates on how Council is tracking will appear early next year through social media, online and in community newspapers. There will also be opportunities for meetings with community or sector groups. The online rates calculator will also return so residents can check exactly what their rates will be for the 2016/17 year.
It's important the community is aware about exactly what rates are being used for and it's exciting to be able to present a bit of a report card' on how it's all going, Mylchreest said.
Waipa continues to be an exciting place. We are continuing to deliver on what we said we would and we will be getting closer to finishing off big ticket items like the library and some of the major water infrastructure projects. And our rates will be lower than what we predicted which is a very good result. It's an exciting time and we look forward to sharing these achievements with the community in more detail early next year.
The Stategic Planning and Policy Committee endorsed the approach last week. It will be formally signed off at the Council meeting on 16 December.
For more information, contact: Natalie Palmer, 027 807 3174